‘Fixated’ man who stalked Emma Raducanu has Wimbledon ticket application blocked

Sam Cooper 18 Jun 2025 1:37 PM

The ‘fixated’ man was arrested at the Dubai Tennis Championships in February.

The man who stalked Emma Raducanu attempted to apply for tickets to the Wimbledon Championships, it has been revealed.

The issue came to the forefront at the Dubai Tennis Championships in February when a 22-year-old Raducanu approached the umpire’s chair in tears having spotted the man in the crowd.

The stalker was removed from the stands and subsequently given a restraining order by Dubai police. As part of that process, his name was circulated to tennis authorities, meaning it registered on the security system of Wimbledon after he had attempted to apply for tickets for this summer’s tournament.

As a result, his application was swiftly blocked.

A statement from the Women’s Tennis Association at the time said: “Emma Raducanu was approached in a public area by a man who exhibited fixated behaviour. This same individual was identified in the first few rows during Emma’s match on Tuesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and subsequently ejected.

“The man will be banned from all WTA events pending a threat assessment, the governing body of the women’s tour said.

“Player safety is our top priority, and tournaments are advised on security best practices for international sporting events. The WTA is actively working with Emma and her team to ensure her well-being and provide any necessary support. We remain committed to collaborating with tournaments and their security teams worldwide to maintain a safe environment for all players.”

After the Dubai incident, Raducanu opted not to press charges but said she was “distraught” over the ordeal.

“I saw him in the first game of the match and I was like, I don’t know how I’m going to finish,” the current No. 36 said. “I literally couldn’t see the ball through tears. I could barely breathe.

“I was like, I need to just take a breather here.”

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Raducanu would go on to lose the match against Karolina Muchova 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 in the second round.

Speaking to BBC Sport a month later, Raducanu said she had increased the security around her after the event.

“[It] could have been dealt with better,” the 2021 US Open champion said. “Since that incident, I have definitely got increased attention and greater security.

“All we can do is look at what happened and react to it in a better way, in a more positive way, rather than looking back and blaming the situation. Now it is being dealt with better, so for me that’s important.

“I’m always now very aware and not necessarily doing things on my own any more. I’m always with someone and always being watched.”